METRO MAN: First-year RedBulls coach Mike Petke has a history with the team dating back to its MetroStars days (inset). Photo:

METRO MAN: First-year Red Bulls coach Mike Petke has a history with the team dating back to its MetroStars days (inset). (
)

Mike Petke used to have a dream. He used to allow his mind to wander to thoughts of his beloved MetroStars — and afterward, his Red Bulls — celebrating their first MLS Cup, visions of a parade down the streets and into their very own stadium, and of the faces of fans that had been with them from the beginning.

But Petke, in his first season coaching the team he played and bled for, won’t let himself dream that dream anymore. That vision has been replaced by the Herculean task of making it a reality. The local kid, who was born on Long Island and lives on the Jersey Shore has grown from rookie defender to fan favorite to first-year manager coaching the likes of Thierry Henry, Tim Cahill and Juninho.

But on Jan. 14, the Bohemia native also was tasked by sporting director Andy Roxburgh to do what no other manager in the history of MLS’ most expensive club has been able to do: Win. The first baby step toward that elusive championship starts with today’s season opener in Portland.

“I know there are question marks. I know there’s pressure, and I accept that,’’ the 37-year-old said. “My job is to get this team ready to play. When the whistle blows, any success we have on the field, the players will have done it. Whatever failures we have will be traced back to me, and I want it that way.’’

What Petke always has wanted was for his hometown team to win. He has played more games (169), had more starts (158) and logged more minutes (14,060) than anybody in team history.

After two years as an assistant, he got his dream job. Picture Mark Jackson coaching the Knicks, or John Franco managing the Mets.

It’s all the more impressive that it came for a club that favored big foreign names such as Carlos Queiroz, Carlos Alberto Parreira and Bora Milutinović, or ex-U.S. coach Bruce Arena. The team has searched for Euro coaches since the Red Bull takeover. Even after firing Swede Hans Backe, they reached a deal with Portugal’s Paulo Sousa before it fell through.

“I’m representing the Jersey Shore and raised on Long Island,’’ Petke said with a knowing nod. “I take a lot of pride in it, specifically because this is the team I played for. It’s not me going to FC Dallas. Where Red Bull has gone the last five years, with whom they’ve brought in, [it’s an honor].

“They understand there’s going to be a learning curve, but I know the game. This is where I want to be, a dream come true. I didn’t think it’d be this quick, [but] give me the keys, let me drive. This isn’t a charity case. They didn’t just give me the job because I’ve been hanging around for 10 years. I must’ve done something right. This is all I’ve wanted.’’

The same could be said of many Red Bulls fans, not shocking since Petke claims if he weren’t coaching the team he would be sitting with the supporters in the South Ward. With him, it doesn’t seem like rhetoric.

Don’t believe him? Then you probably weren’t there in 2000 when he scored against Colorado and ripped off his jersey to reveal a T-shirt that had “Crime of the Century” on the front and “Revenge is Coming” on the back, protesting a nasty Mamadou Diallo hit that broke the ribs of MetroStars keeper Mike Ammann.

Or you weren’t there for his first game in Red Bull Arena, when he scored and kissed his jersey. Or for the team’s final game there last year, when the then-assistant coach grabbed a shovel in the middle of a blizzard and took to the field with the groundskeepers, clearing snow before their playoff game eventually got postponed.

If you saw all that, then you might believe, because Petke clearly does.

“I’ll do anything to make sure this club is successful,” he said. “I won’t say what success is. I won’t bring myself to say it, because if we do the right things, it becomes inevitable.’

“I allowed myself to say it once to my wife when she was down in Florida with us [for preseason]. I got goose bumps. I get a picture in my mind of the parade going down Frank E. Rodgers [Boulevard] toward the stadium.

“It’s just a phenomenal feeling, looking over to the left and the right and seeing supporters that were there in ’98 that are still around. I’ve dreamt about winning a championship in New York since ’98. I’ve put those dreams to rest, because now I have a job to do, and if I … we do — myself, the staff, the players — do what I know we can, if we take care of our business, that other part is inevitable.’’

Petke hasn’t given up on his dream. He has just gotten down to the business of making it a reality.

brian.lewis@nypost.com

Kick start

2012: 16-9-9 (third in the Eastern Conference); lost to D.C. United in conference semis

X-FACTOR: Jamison Olave. Thierry Henry is the star, but after allowing more goals than any other playoff team in 2012, the Red Bulls parted ways with Rafa Marquez. They’re pinning their hopes on 31-year-old Olave, who missed a third of last season with injuries.